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Issue 2023-04

The AVENUE

APRIL

Welcome

GOOD NEWS AND WORSHIP UPDATE

Sunday, April 2, 2023 @ 11 am

PALM SUNDAY

Sermon - "Hosanna!" | Scripture - John 12:12-19

Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor

both in-person and on YouTube or Facebook

WAPC Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgI_BKUlZH70GzG90xIQ1xA

Karen Clark - Elder of the Month of April

SPECIAL NEWS AND INFORMATION

LENTEN THOUGHTS

For the first time in this series on the Gospel of John, we are going backwards in order to go forward. All the way back to Chapter 12. As Jesus comes into Jerusalem, he is coming as King. Riding on a donkey, taking his rightful place as Messiah, the Anointed One. Yet, he does not come to rule as humans have ruled. Jesus is not coming to dominate and take over. Instead, he comes as a peacemaker. Offering hope, peace, and love to all. So on this Palm Sunday, we join the choir of voices that proclaim the Good News “Hosanna! Blessed is the one that comes in the name of the Lord.”

Yours in Christ,

Brandon

HOLY WEEK SERVICES

Holy Week services include a Maundy Thursday Love Feast (potluck dinner and service) on April 6th at Covenant PC Fellowship Hall. The Good Friday service on April 7th at WAPC. Both services begin at 6 pm. We look forward to having you join us.

An offering will be taken at both services that is designated for the Presbyterian Hunger Fund. Your financial support enables the Presbyterian Hunger Program (PHP) to witness to the healing love of Christ and to bring hope to communities and individuals struggling with hunger. By providing access to more and better food; standing in solidarity with economic and environmental justice campaigns; and creating more livable environments for all, your gifts to the Presbyterian Hunger Fund help to end hunger worldwide and care for all God’s creation.

CHURCH DIRECTORY

We appreciate all of you who have submitted your information to the church office for updating our church directory. However, there are others who have not responded. Please do so at your earliest convenience or before the April 16th deadline.

ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS

The Adult Sunday School class is nearing the end of their reading and discussion of Adam Nicolson's book, "God's Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible." They hope to begin a new book on April 30.

The class as selected Philip Yancey's book, "Vanishing Grace: what ever happened to the Good News?" as their next title, which they begin reading and discussing on Sunday, April 30th. You should have plenty of time to secure your personal copy and join them in class. Good used copies can be found on Amazon, as well as BetterWorldBooks.com.

The class meets in the Poteat Library at 10 am. If you wish to join the class there is always room for one more.

BLUEBELL WALK AT WINGED DEER

An outing is planned at Winged Deer Park on Palm Sunday. April 2nd at 2:00 pm to see the Bluebells and other early spring flowers.. This will be a slow-paced stroll mainly on paved paths. We will meet in the parking lot for the Disc Golf course. The entrance is across Carol Creek road from the boat launch area and the pavilion where we have the Father’s day service. Everyone is welcome.

LUNCH BUNCH / FOOD NEWS

The Lunch Bunch / Meal Schedule for APRIL

April 2 @ Cootie Brown's (2715 North Roan Street)

April 9 @ Red Meze Downtown (109 Buffalo Street)

April 16 @ Southern Craft BBQ (601 Spring Street)

April 23 @ Bella Vita's (2927 North Roan Street)

April 30 @ Fellowship Potluck Lunch (Cinco de Mayo theme)

IF ANYONE HAS SUGGESTIONS FOR OTHER DINING VENUES, PLEASE CONTACT THE OFFICE TO ADD THEM TO OUR LUNCH ROTATION. THANKS.

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE MONTH (noted when online)

Sunday, April 2, 2023 - PALM SUNDAY

10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson

11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)

12:30 pm Lunch Bunch @ Cootie Brown's (2715 North Roan Street)

2 pm Afternoon walk at Winged Deer Park to view the bluebells (weather permitting)

5 pm Lenten Meditations on Love @ Jonesborough PC Fellowship Hall

Monday, April 3, 2023

6 pm Lenten Study 6 @ Covenant PC Fellowship Hall

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)

6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal

Thursday, April 6, 2023 - MAUNDY THURSDAY

10 am April PW meeting in the Fellowship Hall

6 pm Maundy Thursday Love Feast / Potluck Supper and Service @ Covenant Presbyterian Church

Friday, April 7, 2023 - GOOD FRIDAY

6 pm Good Friday service in the Sanctuary

Sunday, April 9, 2023 - EASTER SUNDAY

10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson

11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)

12:30 pm Lunch Bunch @ Red Meze Downtown (109 Buffalo Street)

Tuesday, April 11, 2023

3 pm Green Team (via Zoom)

7 pm Session Meeting in Fellowship Hall

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)

6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal

Sunday, April 16, 2023

10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson

11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)

12:30 pm Lunch Bunch @ Southern Craft BBQ (601 Spring Street)

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)

6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal

Saturday, April 22, 2023 - EARTH DAY

Sunday, April 23, 2023

10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson

11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)

12:15 pm Coffee in the Library

1 pm Lunch Bunch @ Bella Vita's (2927 North Roan Street)

Monday, April 24, 2023

6 pm ETSU / U-Kirk Supper hosted by WAPC

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)

6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal

Sunday, April 30, 2023

10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "Vanishing Grace" by Philip Yancey

11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)

12:15 pm Fellowship Potluck Lunch - Cinco de Mayo theme

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

9 am Holston Presbytery Meeting @ Holston Camp, Banner Elk NC

Visit our calendar

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes

in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." ~ John 3:16-17

SESSION NOTES

April Elder of the Month - Karen Clark

Next Session meeting - Tuesday, April 11 @ 7 pm

FINANCIAL UPDATE

[2023 Annual Budget - $ 177,600

Budget through March 31, Week #13 ($44,400)

Receipts $ 78,315.49

Disbursements -$ 41,067.02

Balance $ 37,248.47

Thanks to everyone for your continued support the church with your tithes and offerings during this extraordinary time. You are encouraged to mail your pledge to us or to drop it by the church office during regular business hours. Thanks.

We will be receiving the ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING special offering

on EASTER SUNDAY, APRIL 9th.

We hope that you will give to One Great Hour of Sharing, and join in God's call to share our read with the hungry, to aid and shelter people overcoming catastrophe and conflict , and to resource communities working to cast off the bonds of poverty and oppression.

HOLSTON PRESBYTERY NEWS

Holston Presbytery meetings 2023

All meetings begin at 9 am.

Tuesday, May 2, 2023 @ Holston Presbytery Camp

Saturday, August 5, 2023 @ First Presbyterian, Morristown

Tuesday, November 7, 2023 @ TBD

Rev. Diana Moore, Transitional Stated Clerk

Rev. Karen Russell, Transitional Executive Presbyter

vacant, Transitional Treasurer/ Financial Manager

info@holstonpresbytery.org

423-247-6178

APRIL BIRTHDAYS

April 10 - Rev. George Rolling

April 22 - Mike Miyamoto

April 24 - Theresa Lura

April 24 - Rev. David Wood

April 25 - Rev. Maggie Lauterer

The Chancel flowers were given

in memory of

Doris McConnell Martin

(13 May 1924 – 9 March 2023).

THE 2023 FLOWER LIST IS AVAILABLE ON THE BULLETIN BOARD IN THE SIDE ENTRY

Request Chancel Flowers

THOUGHTS & PRAYERS

For Friends and Loved Ones

Ginger Helm's brother, Larry Ray Davis (pancreatic cancer); Susan Turner (fractured ribs); Sally Gerhardt (in rehab); Beth Gerhardt's friend Teri Chapa and son, Ormar Torres; Jonathan Sharp; Michelle Browning's step-father, Rick Elm; Fred Burrell; Janice Hollingshead; Don Loughry; George, Jo & Nikki Rolling; Rev. Maggie Lauterer; Sue Shanks' friend Judy Klein; Sarah Suptin; church neighbor, Dorothy Harvey; Kelly Hodges.; Edna Campbell.

Prayers for others

Continue to pray for the recent wave of tornadoes across the Southeast U.S.; and the four major ongoing international crises: the Turkey-Syria earthquake; Sao Paulo, Brazil flooding; the Horn of Africa hunger crisis and the Ukrainian Humanitarian Crisis. These emerging crises also need our prayers: the aftermath of tropical cyclone Freddy in Madagascar & Mozambique; flooding in Brazil, Columbia, and Cameroon; forest fires in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Laos; earthquakes in Ecuador; Argentina, Chile, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Japan, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. Additional prayers for the women of Afghanistan. And especially prayers for our nation and for strength, endurance, faith and courage for all.

CENTER FOR DISASTER PHILANTHROPY - https://disasterphilanthropy.org/

UN OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS (OCHA) - https://reliefweb.int/

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE - https://rescue.org

US FEMA - DECLARED DISASTERS - https://www.fema.gov/disaster/declarations

GLOBAL DISASTER ALERT & COORDINATION SYSTEM (GDACS) - https://gdacs.org

Submit Prayer Requests

A Blast from the Past

I'm sure everyone knows this duo.

NOTEWORTHY GREEN SPACE NEWS

When monarch butterflies alight in Mexico's forests each November, they are welcomed as spirits of the ancestors. These pollinators migrate from Canada and the United States to overwinter at the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico, and in spring they head back north again. Unfortunately, this iconic migration is at risk of becoming a memory. Twenty-five years ago, the luminous butterflies inhabited a core area of nearly 45 acres of the monarch reserve. Today, due to factors ranging from climate change to increased use of herbicides along their route, a reduced population clusters together on just seven acres.

Accordingly, the International Union for Conservation of Nature changed the status of the eastern migratory monarchs to Endangered. With this classification the governments of Canada, the US, and Mexico have the scientific basis to expand their collaboration with conservation organizations, the private sector, and civil society to protect the ecosystems of this species. And there is some good news. The 2021-22 winter saw 35% more butterflies than the winter before. (GSN#142)

VIRTUAL CREATION ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK

TANZANIA AND SERENGETI

SCENIC RELAXATION (October 2022 | 1:00:42 min.)

Tanzania, the land of the African savannah and Great Serengeti. Enjoy this 4k Scenic wildlife film featuring the exotic landscapes and animals of Tanzania accompanied with African music. From the Great Serengeti Migration, to they crystal clear waters of Zanzibar, Tanzania is a wonder to behold.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEAcPVg8V7U

IN THE POTEAT LIBRARY

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING DIFFERENT,

CHECK OUT THE POTEAT LIBRARY

NOTE: Please remember that you are welcome to drop by the church library if you are looking for something new to read. We ask that you to sign out any books on the register sheet found on the file cabinet in the corner with the call #, book title, your name and date checked out. The white book cart inside the library has new titles. There is also an orange book cart in the Heritage Room that has books free for the taking. Come and browse.

Strong was Her Faith: Women of the New Testament

By J. Ellsworth Kalas

(225.9/KAL)

In this follow-up to his book The Thirteen Apostles, popular author J. Ellsworth Kalas focuses on several women of great faith who were crucial, in ways both obvious and understated, to the story of the New Testament. Kalas looks into the life and times of eleven different women. With his signature style, Kalas examines the Scriptures to see what we can learn about these women and what we can learn from them, and how each woman fit into as well as shaped the New Testament story.

Chapters include:

· “Elizabeth: A Friend in Need”

· “Anna: She Knew How to Wait”

· “Martha, the Disciplined”

· “Mary, the Extravagant”

· “The Mighty Widow”

· “The Anonymous Evangelist”

· “Mary Magdalene: When Love Is Greater than Faith”

· “Mary, the Mother of Mark”

· “Dorcas: Worth a Miracle”

· “Lydia, the Businesswoman

· “Mary in Life and Legend”

· “Why Mary?”

REMINDERS

Congregational Concerns / Prayer Requests - Please contact the church office or Sherry Bailey.

Flower List - Sign up to sponsor flowers for our weekly worship services in honor or in memory of loved ones. Arrangements are $65 each.

Liturgists - On Hiatus - We are always looking for new people to be liturgists. Please contact the church office, if you would like to volunteer.

e-Avenue deadline - Please submit information to church office ( office@wataugapc.org or 926-7942) for the May2023 issue of the e-AVENUE no later than April 17th. This includes team and committee reports, news, planned events and other newsworthy items.

Facebook - Please remember to friend and follow our Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church Facebook page [https://www.facebook.com/Watauga-Avenue-Presbyterian-Church-94712920937/ ]. All news and events will be reported there.

Photos needed - We welcome contributions to our Facebook page via your comments and photos of church events and activities. Please also submit your photos to the church office for archiving. It will be wonderful to have a visual record of all of the positive things that Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church does for our community.

Visit our website

Established 27 September 1892, Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church is a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ. Reformed in theology and Presbyterian by way of organization, it is related to Holston Presbytery, the Synod of Living Waters, and to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

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